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The Kannur University Syndicate on Tuesday decided to remove Registrar Joby K. Joseph amid moves to change the universitys position before the Supreme Court in the case concerning the appointment of Priya Varghese as an Associate Professor.
The decision to replace the registrar was reportedly taken after the matter was brought before the Syndicate as a special agenda item. Priya Varghese is the wife of CPI(M) Kannur district secretary K.K. Ragesh. Following the Syndicates decision, the duties of the Registrar have been entrusted to Finance Officer Sunil Kumar S. He will continue to discharge the responsibilities of the post until the university makes further arrangements. The move comes against the backdrop of the legal dispute over Vargheses appointment. Joseph had earlier filed affidavits before the Kerala High Court and later before its Division Bench defending the appointment. Kannur University had been represented before the Supreme Court by its standing counsel, K.R. Subhash Chandran, in connection with the case. However, the Syndicate has now formally replaced Chandran with advocate P.S. Zulfikar Ali, a decision that is being viewed as part of the universitys move to present a revised position before the apex court. Priya Vargheses appointment as Associate Professor in the Malayalam department at Kannur University has been the subject of legal proceedings, The Kerala High Court on June 23, 2023, set aside the single bench order directing Kannur University to reconsider the teaching experience of Priya Varghese.The Kerala High Court division bench had said that Priya Varghese has the necessary teaching experience. Earlier, the High Court single bench ordered Kannur University to review the rank list according to which she was appointed as an associate professor in the Malayalam department at Kannur University. The single-bench order on November 17, 2023 also said that Priya Varghese did not have the necessary teaching experience, which is a main criterion for the post. (ANI)
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